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I am a CA and finance professional from India with over 5 years of consulting experience with BDO in tax and regulatory advisory services where I have provided advisory in relation to corporate restructuring exercises such as Merger and acquisitions. I have been offered admission from following MBA schools in US:
1) University of Notre Dame (Mendoza): US News rank 26 and has 1 yr OPT
2) University of Rochester (Simon): US News rank 40 and has STEM Designated extension of OPT for additional 2 years
3) College of William and Mary (Raymond Mason) - US News rank 54 and has STEM Designated extension of OPT for additional 2 years with Business Analytics concentration
Post MBA, I intend to join finance consulting practice of Big 4s or other mid size firms such as Gartner. My second preference would be to work in corporate finance profile. I am seeking guidance on which decision should I accept in this case. ROI, curriculum and learning experience is almost at par for all the schools. My key points of consideration and queries are the following:
1) To what extent does the rank of school matter from employment perspective? Does a higher ranked school with a better brand value preferred by employers over lower ranked schools? E.g. In my case, will Mendoza's reputation be useful in getting desired job in corporate finance/ consulting ? or are the other two universities equally accepted?
2) What is weighed more by employers - a higher rank or 3 years OPT? Particularly in my case, would it be worth to forgo higher rank of Mendoza as against 3 year OPT offered by other schools? I do not mind returning to India, but I hope to join and work at a top consulting firm before I go back.
3) Which school would have a better brand value in India or are consulting firms indifferent about it?
My personal inclination would be towards College of William and Mary since I found their alumni and admissions staff to be warm and welcoming. However, Mendoza's rank and brand is something that I cannot disregard.
Have you decided yet ? I am in quite a similar situation. Got full tuition for William and Mary and full tuition and stipend in Fisher. $ difference is about $50k. My career goal is corporate finance. being an international student makes it a tough decision. Fisher is strong in finance, while William & Mary has its stem and executive partner as big advantages. ~ 20 rank difference is something , right ? Even in your case Notre Dame and William and Mary is 30 difference.
I am applying for Notre Dame in round 2, if I could get around 80% scholarship for MBA/MSBA, I will go for ND